I have to admit I often have trouble summoning the motivation to vote in the midterms. Usually the polling in my state is so lopsided that it seems pointless. However, it turns out that the two senate candidates this year are within five points of each other. Realistically, the MAGA candidate is probably going to win, but it’s close enough this time to be worth the effort. It also helps that there are local measures I care about. And of course, there’s the need to at least try to do something about this abominable administration.
Trump’s second term is pretty much the dumpster fire I expected. Many of his most dangerous initiatives have been blocked by the courts. So far. But the courts are slow, and while they’ve mostly held the line, that line has often felt thin and fragile. A hostile congress, or at least one that doesn’t roll over whenever the president violates the constitution or law, would be a big improvement.
Not that I’m in love with the Democrats right now. Among other things, I’m not onboard with the left’s turn against the tech industry. And sure, they’re talking affordability now, but I can’t easily forget their cavalier attitude toward inflation when they were in charge. As a social liberal who’d like to see a more robust social safety net, I’ve long been a reliable vote for the Democrats. But I have my own finances to think about, and inflation isn’t good for them.
That said, the current inflation problem would be less of an issue if we weren’t in a pointless war in the middle east. Capriciously picking trade wars and trying to undermine the Fed’s independence also aren’t helping. But even without those dangers, an overstimulated economy is prone to inflation, which is what I think we have with our runaway deficits. Neither side is talking much about that, except to throw out fantasy solutions. (Realistic solutions, unfortunately, involve some combination of tax hikes (not just for billionaires) and benefit cuts.)
But politics is about getting the best deal you can for now. With that in mind, divided government seems like the best option.
Anyway, I did my usual thing and voted early. This is typically the point where I complain about my state making mail-in voting pointlessly difficult, but I lucked out this time and found myself near one of the early voting locations when it wasn’t crowded. And there’s a non-trivial chance this year of Trump trying to interfere with late counting, which makes voting in person actually feel like the safer option. It’s pathetic we have to think like that in this country, but it appears to be where we are.
If you’re a US citizen and care at all about what happens in this country, please vote, in person if possible. Don’t be complacent or fatalistic from what you hear about the polls. Polls often have systematic errors. Vote. If you don’t, your opinion literally doesn’t count.
A tragedy. And also terrifying. Fascism or at least tyranny seems to beckon in so many corners. My only disagreement is my fear and loathing of big tech. Thank god for the open source movement and, hopefully, the development of cheap neuromorphic chips. The tech bros are every bit and dangerous as your vicious, insane, demented “president”.
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Maybe I’m in denial, but I’m still hoping we avoid a breakdown of democracy. On big tech, for me, it feels like a mistake to paint all the tech companies with the same brush. There are certainly some I’m not wild about, and I’ll freely admit none are saints. But it feels counter-productive to just be against the technology business, or business in general, which feels like the mode many on the left have fallen into.
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